For two years now I have been writing about the beasts that share our wildlife habitat here in Western Massachusetts. One installment a month published over at Native Plants and Wildlife Gardens. This month, while most of these birds would be nearing their overwinter sites, I offer the twenty-fourth installment of ‘A Bestiary . . […]
Tag: Massachusetts
Back To Cooler Garden Days of June ~ Roses, Mauves, Reds and Bluebird Broods
July has been a sultry mix so far with last night’s “humiture” becoming more bearable or wearable I might say. I find it amusing that a former weatherman and gardener of the nameGeorge Winterling developed what we know as the ‘heat index’ . . . where the temperature of the air and that of the […]
Flower Hill Farm Spring Butterflies ~ Part Two
Spring precipitates into summer and we can easily recognize the longest day of the year by how we measure time in our hurried lives. Spring or Summer Azure Celastrina ladon, Form violacea (and others)is another matter . . . as the butterflies are difficult to identify. The more experienced butterfly watchers of the invaluableMassachusetts Butterfly […]
King Eider (Somateria spectabilis)
One of the prettiest ducks that winter in the Massachusetts area is the King Eider. Over the last few years, I’ve been looking for the King Eider, in order to obtain some decent photographs of this beautiful bird. A few years ago, on a birding festival on Cape Ann, I saw the bird and obtained […]
Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus) A Winter Visitor
Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus) is a winter visitor to the East Coast of North America. The birds that are found here probably come from the breeding population in Iceland. The Lesser Black-backed Gull breeds in the Atlantic coasts of Europe and migrates in the winter. From the British Isles self to West Africa. Every […]
Sandhill Cranes throughout the United States
Sandhill cranes are one of my favorite birds. I have yet to see them during spring migration in Nebraska, where it gets its name because of the Nebraska’s sandhills. However, I have observed them, and photograph them in Florida, the subspecies in Florida is considered endangered, New Mexico at Bosque del Apache, and the cranberry […]
Common Loon (Gavia immer)
The Common Loon or as known as the Great Northern Diver in Eurasia breeds in the northern portion of North America, Greenland, Iceland and Scotland. It winters on the seacoasts or large lakes of south Europe and the United States. Because of its migration habits, it is seen commonly in the waters off the Massachusetts […]
Cape vacay
A young male black bear (Ursus americanus) that made a surprise appearance on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, has been returned to the mainland by state wildlife officials. The isolated peninsula is a popular vacation spot but not for bears. The 180-pound bruin became a minor celebrity after completing a refreshing swim across the 500-foot-wide Cape Cod […]